Introduction
- In India, every child has various rights as a coparcener in the ancestral properties. The Hindu Succession Act does not treat sons and daughters in varied ways which conceivably is the pleasing remarkableness of the Act.
- The Hindu Succession Act has fair and equitable provisions for both sons and daughters. Both sons and daughters are the joint owners of the property and if they want their respective share, they can go on to file a suit for the partition of the property. It possible for a son or a daughter to amass a discrete property and at the same time, they also possess a right to sell or give away their share in the ancestral property as well as the self-obtained property to any third party or stranger. They cannot be restricted to get indulged into the transactions of sale and purchase of their property, hardly matters whether they acquired that property as a coparcener in the ancestral property or they obtained it separately.
- Furthermore, it is also an incontestable regulation that a self-acquired property which is given as a gift by a father to his son or daughter could not be deemed as an ancestral property. All the transactions concerning sale or purchase of such property would be up to the desire of the respective child/children to whom the property has been designated as a gift. The bearer of such property is within his/her right to part with that property in accordance with his/her wish.
Right of Sons and Daughters on Ancestral Properties
In the instances regarding ancestral property, both sons and daughters have equal right over such property. A property could be regarded as an ancestral property only when it has been inherited by the father from his father which means that for a property to be considered as ancestral it is necessary that the father of the son or daughter has inherited that property from the grandfather of the said son or daughter either after the death of the grandfather or in his lifetime if the grandfather had partitioned the property. However, if the father has received the property as a gift from the grandfather then in such case, the property which has been stated as a gift would not be held as an ancestral property.Rights of Sons and Daughters on the Property which is Self Acquired by the Father
If the property in the discussion is a property which has been procured or purchased by the father, the sons and daughters cannot claim any right over it as long as the father is alive. The sons and daughters can attest no legal right to the property which had been self-acquired by the father during his lifetime. As long as the father is alive, he will be the only owner of the self-acquired property and all the possession, freehold, title and proprietary rights concerning the self-acquired property would rest with the father himself. In such self-procured property by the father, his sons and daughters can claim no right of possession up until his lifetime.Transfer of Property by a Father to his Sons and Daughters as a Gift
In the well known case of C. N. Arunachala Mudaliar vs C. A. Muruganatha Mudaliar the Supreme Court of India held that property passed on by the father to his son or daughter as a gift could not become ancestral property in the hands of the son or daughter merely by reason of the fact that he/she received it from his/her father. The court remarked that the property of the grandfather can in the general run of things vest in the father as ancestral property. The father comes into the possession of the ancestral property under two circumstances, firstly if he inherits such property on the death of the grandfather or has been presented with it by the partition made by the grandfather himself during his lifetime. Nevertheless, when the father receives the property of the grandfather by way of gift, it is not deemed an ancestral property. Keeping this reasoning in mind, a son or a daughter can have no claim on the property of his/her father which had been gifted by his/her grandfather to his/her father. If a father hands over a property as a gift to his sons or daughters, it would come under the bracket of self-acquired property. The grandson or granddaughter, In such cases, will be possessing no legal right in such property because his/her grandfather chose to gift the property to his son or daughter, which he could have given to them in any other manner as well or could also have given to any other person. To have a summarized outlook, if an individual has received property from his/her father as a gift, tomorrow his/her children will not be able to claim their share because that property would be identified as ancestral property. Such a property is regarded as self-acquired property, on condition that there is no indicated manifestation in the deed of the gift by the grandfather while gifting the property to his son or daughter. Sons and daughters enjoy property rights only on the properties that have been transferred upon their father, from up to four generations and have stayed undivided. To become aware of whether a property is ancestral in the possession of the individual or not, there are two things which have to be kept in mind: (i) The relationship between the original and the present owner. (ii) The mode of transmission. Property can only be designated as ancestral if the current holder has got it by the virtue of the fact that he/she is one descendant of the veritable owner.Claim of Sons and Daughters on the Property of Father which had been gifted to their Father by their Grandfather
A gift from father to his son or daughter could not be considered as the part of the ancestral property as the son or the daughter does not inherit the property on the demise of the grandfather or secures it by separation of property made by the grandfather during his lifetime. The grandson or the granddaughter is the possessor no legal right to such property because his/her grandfather selected to grant benevolence on his father which he could have presented to any other individual as well. Therefore, the engrossment which he gets hold of in such property must be dependent upon the will of the grantor and therefore, when the son or the daughter has received the property from his/her father as a gift, his/her sons or daughter would not be able to assert a part in it thinking of the property to be an ancestral property. The father can estrange the granted property to anyone in accordance with his preferences and in any manner he likes or wishes. Such a property is put down as self-acquired property, if and only if there is an absence of any expressed intention in the deed of the gift by the grandfather while gifting the property to his son. Sons and daughters can enjoy property rights exclusively on the properties that have been designated upon their father’s name and become ancestral property in the father’s authority.A Rightful View Of the Daughter’s Rights on the Father’s Property
Hindu Daughters
The Hindu daughters are undeniably the proud possessors of equal right in the parental property after the arrival of the amendment in Hindu Succession Act 1956 that came into force on the 9th day September 2005. The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, initially did not give daughters the equal rights on the ancestral property. This disparity was unfastened by an amendment that came into force on September 9, 2005. After the advent of this above board legislation, the set of conditions with regards to the daughters’ entitlement on the property of their father have revamped in a very affirming modus operandi.Muslim Daughters
Under the stipulations of the Muslim Personal Laws, the laws concerning inheritance are rather strict and stern. In keeping with its ideology and canon that a woman is half the worth of a man, a son is entitled to be presented with double the share of a daughter. However, it is also a costmary ordinance that the daughter gets to enjoy the complete and absolute ownership of whatever property she inherits. In the case where there is no brother present, she is bestowed with a right to take possession of half the whole and undivided share. She also gets conferred with a lawful right to manage, control, and to get involved in any transaction concerning the sale and purchase of the property she has been conferred with or obtained according to her wishes. Additionally, she will also be permitted to accept gifts even from those she would inherit from. This is antithetical for the reason that she can inherit not more than one-third of the man’s share but can be presented with gifts and bestowals without any bother. Till a daughter is not married, she gets to have the benefit of the right to stay in her parents’ house and look for maintenance without any inconvenience. In an instance of a divorce, charge for maintenance retrogressed to her parental family after the iddat period (which is nearly of 3 months) is finished. Nonetheless, if her children are capable enough for supporting her in a fairly good way, it becomes their duty and accountability to maintain their mother and they lawfully get entrusted with the task of maintaining their mother. In such instances, the responsibility of maintenance also falls back on them legally.Share:
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